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Bride's Lodge
Bride's Lodge is one of the most ancient freeholds on all of England/ Albion. Overview Just west of Glastonbury on the banks of a river lies yet another hill, this one called Bride's Mound by locals. Once the site of a shrine to St. Brigid, and before that, the goddess Brigid, few pilgrims visit this site in modem times. Near the foot of Bride's Mound sits a three-story house with a small patch ofgarden outside, at 19 Bride's Lane. The garden itself is overgrown, with wildflowers and herbs growing over the stone path to the house and creeping over the fence toward the street. Few people give the place a second glance, for only a scant few know the secret of what lies within. Those who see past the mundane seeming of the house witness a riot of color in the front garden, where red and gold blossoms light up the yard. One of the back bedroom windows holds a multicolored psychedelic chimerical lava lamp, jokingly referred to by locals as "the grail-shaped beacon." The house is one of the most ancient freeholds in all of Albion. It consists of a dozen or so small bedchambers (mostly on the second and third stories), a kitchen, bath and a large meeting room at the center. Though over the years much has changed about the house, one thing remains the same: the hearth. The focal point of the main room is a large stone hearth, where the Great Balefire of Albion has burned since time immemorial. More than a dozen trods converge on the fields and woods surrounding the house, and the trod to Tara-nar actually opens in the center of the front vegetable patch. Only those freeholds sustained by balefire connect to Bride's Hall via trods; most of those freeholds that draw their power from standing stones date back to the same time that Bride's Hall was founded. The trods are seldom used, though; as their purpose is to insure that extinguished balefires are rekindled as quickly as possible. Maidens of the Flame From each generation, 18 maidens are chosen to tend the flame. Not all of the maidens are Kithain; over the years, many kinain and mortal mages have watched over the flame, as well as several Garou ofthe Fianna tribe. At any given time, usually only three to nine of the women are present; the rest only return for festivals or in times of great need. Megan Currently, overseeing the work of these women is a boggan wilder named Megan. Although she appears to be in her early twenties, she has appeared that way for longer than anyone can remember, for Megan is Síocháin — a changeling who has achieved immortality. Born prior to the Shattering, she was one of the fae who successfully took on a mortal seeming to fend off the ravages of Banality. Though her appearance changes from time to time (mainly to allay the suspicions of her mortal neighbors), her sparkling brown eyes always remain the same. Megan is a kindly woman; always ready with a cup of tea or a plate of hot scones or fresh gingerbread for fellow Kithain weary from their travels. She remains active in the community, writing articles for local newspapers under a nom de plume, working with local ecology groups, and even occasionally speaking at interfaith services held in the ruins of the old abbey. Megan travels frequently; bringing news from freeholds on the continent and all across the Isle to the most far-flung Kithain outposts. Many of the rulers of the kingdoms of Albion (including, some whisper, Albion himself) have spent time under Megan's fosterage in the past, and her influence has helped to avert border skirmishes and all-out wars more than once. References # CTD. Isle of the Mighty, p. 44. Category:Freeholds (CTD)